Estrus
by Verybadgirl
Summary: Sometimes this mutant is too hot to handle...
1. Default Chapter

John liked the heat. He liked the way the air shimmered. Where he was now the air was dry, cery little moisture, just the way it should be. Moisture didn't please him. His real home was cold and wet, miserable weather throughout the whole air. That's why he decided to take this trip, away from school and teachers, away from hate and others of his kind. Here he could just pretend, pretend he was normal. Just like everyone else.  
John reached up and ran a hand through his smooth hair and bushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. It's not that the sun bothered him, as a matter of fact his blue eyes worked better in the harsh light, he just wanted to be cool, to fit in. Just like everybody else.  
And, in that respect, he was not alone.  
The park he was currently occupying was filled with teenagers. To his right was a group of girls parading around in short skirts and tops that barely covered their overly tanned skin. He could see no sense in these girls. They spent so much time and effort trying to look mature at such a young age. It just seemed so childish. Not that the opposite sex was the only one at fault. John was the first to admit that guys were just as bad. The evidence was all around him.  
Boys trying so hard to impress the attractive wannabes. Didn't the girls understand? They only want one thing. What did Jean say to him once? A Man's first intinct is to spread his seed.  
As much as John hated to admit it, she was right. It was not often when John was caught not thinking about sex. All guys did it, he was not ashamed but it frustrated him that he could not find a girl to fit his fantasy.  
In his mind the act was all fire and steam, passion and raw animal instinct but there also had to be a connnection. A reason to think that everything was right no matter what. All the girls at school liked was the cold...  
He turned his attention back to the crowd, milling around aimlessly. He enjoyed this lack of purpose. There was no thought of destiny or future, simply the now. That blessed moment after then and before soon.  
Shit, when did he turn into a poet?  
Glancing back at the group of girls with the intention of once again pondering the mysteries of adolence, a strange feeling swept over him. It felt a hot breeze surrounding him and pulling him away from everything he thought he had ever known.  
John scanned the crowd, afraid his past had suddenly cought up with him on his lttle 'holday' but he could see nothing. Then his gaze fell upon somthing that intrigued him.  
A girl, standing away from the other twittering teenagers, watched the crowd in a similar way the John was. Her dress was strange, taking thw weather into account. Tighted jeans addorned her shapely legs, flaring slightly at the bottom. From what John could see of her top, he could tell it was black and rose high about the throat, showing no skin. But it was the long leather duster duster and thick black boots that fascinated him the most. In fact, he only knew one person who couls dress like that in such heat and that was himself.  
For now, she had his back to him, letting John see what most men would call her most prized feature: waist length hair. It fell down her back in loose girls and shone brightly in the sun. At certain angles, the goldern blonde tresses seemed to catch fire as it caught the sun's rays, turning it a powerful ginger-red.  
When she finally did turned around, john gasped at the sudden heat wave that came from her direction. Her slightly tanned skin seemed to shimmer, the same way the hot air did. Her dark grey eyes were ablaze with something akin to fiery passion, regardless of the colour.  
It was a feeling he had never experienced before. He knew deep in his heart that she was different, just like him.  
Suddenly determined, John pushed through the throng of scatly clad girls and made his way towards the solitary figure. She had yet to notice him and the closer he got the more he noticed how sad she looked, how lost. Her face was unguarded as she scanned the crowd, looking but not seacrhing. She stood with a defiant air, maybe expecting an attack, who knows because her fists were held tight at her sides, prepared. In was in that moment that she saw him.  
Sound seemed to dim suddenly and a spotlight appeared over the leather clad girl as the rest of the world faded away. Her mouther opened in a small gasp, her pink lips saying nothing but speaking so much. It that one gesture, John knew she felt what he was feeling. It was the heat eminating from her, a signal John could no longer ignore.  
He had stopped but feet from her when the earth had decided to disappear, therefore only two steps were needed to reach her. She was still in shock, mouth hanging open, trying desperately to understand what was happening. For a momnet he could do nothing but stare into her fathomless eyes and draw in her spicy scent but it did no take long for him to touch her smooth skin. He raised his hand slowly, hesitantly, expecting her to push him away at any moment. But, to his surprise, she leaned into his touch, her head bent forward slightly as his hand finally carressed her cheek. John would say he saw steam rising from their heated skin but he could not have been certain. Right then nothing mattered except the sudden urge to feel her body underneath his, to warm up her skin even more, to kiss her mouth for the first time.  
This time when he made his move there was no hesitation. Their lips meet suddenly and savagely, not trying to savour the moment but to devour it. John pulled her into his embrace and ran his hands through her long hair. More heat was building beneath his fingers but he took no notice. His mind was elsewhere.  
Then a tree blew up.  
The old oak erupted in a shower of flames right next to them but they did not notice If it was not for the sudden screaming that filled the air, they would not have broken the kiss.  
They stared into each others eyes until they were pulled out of their own world by an hysterical voice.  
"What the hell? Move! It;s on fire. MOVE!"  
It took John a second to realise that the voice was directed to them, or, more importantly, the girl.  
A crowd had gathered around the spectical as the girls stared in shock at the burning tree, the fire reflecting in her eyes, making her seem less than humen when it was obvious she was so much more. In sudden panic, her friend reached her hand down and grabbed the girl's hand. The look on her face turned from concern to pain as her skin sizzled in the hot girl's grip. The friend wrenched her hand away with a scream and took two frightened steps away from the girl. The rest of the crown followed suit, looking bewildered and wary, until a circle surrounded both of them.  
The girl, on the other hand, was just down right scared. Her eyes from John to the fire, which was beginning to burn more fiercely, threatening to spread to the other large oaks that filled the park.  
Sensing her fear and understanding it was founded, John took a step away from her and faced the tree. This the girl took as a sign of fear and, possible hatred.  
"I didn't mean..." she started, loud enough to be heard by everyone but John knew the statement was meant for him.  
"I know," he replied softly as he raised his hand towards the burning tree. Without warning, the flames died down sharply until there was nothing left but a burnt out skeleton, this happened simply because John willed it so.  
John could hear the collective gasp from the crowd and the soft murmerings that he had heard all his life. In a matter of seconds his anonymity had disappeared. He was now something to ge feared.  
The murmering slowly became louder until everyone was talking openly. Soon, this noise was punctuated by shouts of waords that he had not heard in a long tim.  
"Freak!"  
"What is it?"  
"It's a freak!"  
"Yeah, a mutant..."  
John was about to turn around and face the closed minded when the girl started crying openly. This surprised John enough to make him forget his vengience for a moment. The heat still radiated from her and he could see the tears evapourating from her skin as soon as they left her eyes.  
For a minute she sobbed loudly, covering her face with her hands. John could pinpint the moment when it became too much to bear.  
"I am not a mutant!" she screamed with little conviction at all. John knew the truth and was not moved by this but her next words chilled him to his hot-blooded core.  
"I am not a freak," she said, her voice dripping with hate, hatred of herself and what she was put through everyday. her words shocked everyone into silence. she soon realised this was her chance and, before anyone could stop her, she turned and ran.  
It did not take much to convince John to follow her. 


	2. Chapter 2

Part 2  
  
Through the crowded park the girl ran, John following close behind her. He could hear sounds start again as he ran but he paid no attention. His only thought was of the girl.  
Fire engines raged in the background, flashes of red passing into John's vision then out again. Memories from long ago threatened to swallow him for a moment but he pushed them away, pushed his body harder, faster. He could now only see her blonde hair bouncing in the distance as she took off towards the edge of the park. Suddenly scared he was going to loose her, John speed up more, until his body ached with pain but still he ran.  
For a second he lost her but sounds of car horns and screeching tyres told him she had made her way onto the busy road that surrounded the park, causing havoc as the cars piled into one another. Following those noises, he crossed the road too but nobody noticed him for the damaged had already been done by his blonde beauty.  
A glimpse of a black jacket and goldern hair flashing into a dark alley and John was almost upon her, her footsteps clearly echoing on the damp walls.  
"STOP!" he screamed, his body barely able to support his voice. At first she did not seem to hear him, through her running did become slower then before. Slowly, ever so slowly, her steps became less steady, her breathing loud and ragged, no stopping to her tears.  
Time stopped as her anguish became to much for her to bear and she collapsed silently to the ground, head on her bent knees, rocking back and forth in a soothing rythm only she understood. By the time John reached her, she was still, a statue without movement. her breath had even seemed to stop.  
John did not know what to do. The heat of the first encounter was gone and though there was still a connection, a kind of ackwardness had settled over him that he could not understand. He realised that he did not know this girl, what she had been though, why she was the way she was. God, he did not even know her name.  
Hesitently, he reached over and placed a hand on her shoulder. He felt her move at the sudden intrusion of space but otherwise she stayed so still it was eery. John suddenly felt like a goofball standing there and went to move his hand away but was stopped when her hand grabbed his. This time, as their skin touched, John could see the steam, the heat biulding up between them and he knew. What he just was not so clear on.  
"What's your name?" he asked, being the first thing to come to his head.  
"Lili," she replied, her voice coming from deep within her curled up body.  
"I'm J... Pyro, I'm Pyro."  
He heard her laugh suddenly, a painful and heartless laugh.  
"Pyro. As in pyromaniac. How comforting," she said, finally lifting her face and looking at him. Her eyes were red from crying and her lip trembled. There was no humour there, just a sad realty.  
"It's just a name. That's all," he snapped, letting go of her hand and stepping backwards.  
"Oh no, it's more than just that, J... Oops! Sorry, I mean Pyro." Her voice slipped so icely from her mouth her would have thought it impossible. Standing up to her full height, she brushed her lingering tears away and pulled her long jacket closer to her body.  
"Is that it? Are we done here? Cause I'm over being saved."  
John was stunned. Her behaviour had taken such a sharp turn, if he did not know any better he would say the girl he kissed was a completely different girl to the one in front of him.  
He caught himself suddenly from that thought. He did not know any better, because he did not know Lili. For all he knew, Lili had multible personalities or something. And now John was just pissed.  
"What the hell is your problem? I was only trying to help," he said, his voice booming down on her smaller frame but she stood tall and meet him face on.  
"Help?" she replied, again that sarcastic humour entering her voice. "The only way you helped was by helping me loose control!  
"What do you want? A thankyou? Okay. Thankyou for helping me hurt more people. Thankyou for helping me reveal what I am to almost the whole city. Thankyou for ruining the sorry excuse for a life I had left. Happy?"  
John just stood there watching Lili vent her anger. For a couple of minutes, she had started to steam and her fingers had sent of sparks flying into different directions. John was scared see wastrying to blow him up until he understood she had no power over what she was doing. She had no control.  
"You're a mutant."  
"Yeah well, duh. Where have you been all day?" she bit.  
"So am I."  
"And?"  
"God! Quit it with the over defenceiveness okay? Get a grip."  
Sparks tingled again.  
"I can help you."  
"Help me? Didn't we just go over this? I don't need your help! I can handle things fine on my own."  
"Oh, so that is why you have no control?"  
"What?"  
Sparks bristled.  
"You have no control. You probably hurt people all the time." John heard a sound come from her. It was something akin to a growl. "Now, now, I'm sure it is not your fault, well, ALL your fault anyway. I bet some of the people even deserved it. Especially the ones who died.'  
Bingo.  
Lili let out a scream of anger and ran at him, hands out in front of her, palms facing him. Though John was expecting this reaction, he had not expected the force behind to be so... forceful.  
Lili pushed him roughly to the ground, placing her hands firmly on his chest. With all her weight she held him down, her anger and power combined into one very lethal combination.  
Starting from his chest, John began to fell a tingling sensation flow throughout his body. Not what he would call unpleasent at all, it slowly morphed into a strong heat, spreading down his limbs and into his head. As the heat began to build up inside him, John finally understood what Lili was trying to do. The only reason he was still alive right now was because of his control. Any normal humen being would be dead by now, the pressure biulding up inside them causing to explode into a mass of flames. To spontaniously combust.  
Pulling all of his power into himself, he felt the heat she was sending into him flow into his fingers. Taking a deep breath, he released it, sending Lili flying accross the other side of the alley. Heaving slightly at the strength that took out of him, he got to his feet and faced the somewhat singed girl. She was in a ball again, rocking to that unknown rythm.  
"See, I can help you."  
"But I have hurt so many people. I have no control. Once I start... Well, you saw..."  
"I did. But so did you. You saw what I can do, I can make sure you never hurt anyone. Just... I just want you to stay with me. Will you stay with me?"  
Lili raised her head and looked deep into his fathomless eyes, searching for the truth. Lucking for John because all he was saying was the truth.  
"I always told people I can create the fire but never control it..."  
Lili reached out her hand and John pulled her up, more sparks flying but of a different kind.  
"I guess I don't have to worry about that any more." 


End file.
